Oven Roasted Squash & Eggplant Curry

Oven-Roasted Squash & Eggplant Curry is a combination of many of the curry recipes that I’ve made in the past from Acorn Squash & Spinach Curry to Eggplant & Black Eyed Pea Curry. This version of curry includes all of my absolute favorite ingredients-- eggplant, tomatoes, squash, and spinach. The eggplant and tomatoes are slowly simmered in a deliciously spiced broth before the roasted squash and velvety spinach are stirred in to create an absolutely delightful curry. Serve Oven Roasted Squash & Eggplant Curry over basmati rice for a tasty, vegetarian meal.

Oven Roasted Squash & Eggplant Curry
Gluten Free
Serves Four
Click Here for Printable Recipe



Ingredients--
1 medium acorn squash, peeled, seeded & cubed (about 16 ounces of squash cubes)
1 tablespoon grapeseed oil, divided
1 teaspoon paprika
1 tablespoon yellow mustard seeds
3 garlic cloves, minced
2 tablespoons fresh ginger root, grated
1/4 of a jalapeno, seeds removed and finely diced
1 cup grape tomatoes, halved
1 tablespoon tomato paste
2 cups vegetable broth, check for gluten
1 tablespoon curry powder
2 teaspoon ground cumin
1 large eggplant, diced (about 16 ounces once diced)
2 (9-10 ounce) packages frozen spinach
1 tablespoon fresh lime juice
Salt & Pepper
Optional for Serving--Brown Basmati Rice


1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil and coat with a layer of olive oil spray.

2. Add squash to baking sheet and drizzle with 1 teaspoon oil, then season with paprika, salt, and pepper. Stir to coat squash in spices.

3. Roast squash 40-45 minutes, or until golden brown and tender, stirring halfway through cooking.

4. While the squash is roasting, heat 1 teaspoon of oil in a large saucepan to medium-high. Add mustard seeds to saucepan. Once mustard seed begin to “pop”, quickly cover pan with a lid. Let seeds “pop” for about 30 seconds, shaking covered pan gently to prevent them from burning.

5. Reduce heat to medium low, then uncover pan and add remaining 1 teaspoon of oil. Add garlic, ginger, and jalapeno to the pan and sauté for about 1 minute or until garlic is fragrant. Season with salt and pepper.

6. Stir in tomatoes, tomato paste, and 1/4 of the vegetable broth to deglaze pan.

7. Add curry powder, cumin, and eggplant to saucepan. Season with salt and pepper, then stir to combine all ingredients. Stir in remaining 1 and 3/4 cups of vegetable broth.

8. Raise heat to high and bring mixture to boil, stirring often. Reduce heat to low, cover, and let curry simmer 10-12 minutes or until eggplant is fork tender.

9. Once eggplant is tender, stir in frozen spinach. Cover pan and cook for 8-10 minutes or until spinach is mostly thawed and can be broken apart with a spoon.

10. Stir in roasted squash cubes and continue to cook curry 8-10 minutes more, until all ingredients are heated through and evenly incorporated into curry (make sure spinach is evenly broken up and thawed), stirring often. Taste for seasoning.

11. Remove curry from heat and stir in lime juice.

12. Serve curry over basmati rice, if using, or simple enjoy on it’s own.

Nutritional Information--approximately 155 calories per serving (1/4 of the curry)